WAR IN UKRAINE

Two years ago, the lives of millions of children were changed forever in Ukraine. Since then, children’s lives have been torn apart. Children have seen their homes, playgrounds and schools bombed. They’ve lost loved ones to the violence or been separated from family members while being forced to flee. They’ve been cut off from healthcare and school. 

Today, 2.9 million children in Ukraine are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, and the impact of the war on children's mental health cannot be underestimated. 

1,000 days into the war, around 3.55 million people remain displaced in Ukraine and a further 6.75 million people have been forced to flee across borders to seek refuge. Many are being pushed to the brink, grappling with threats to their health, safety and livelihoods. 

In 2024 there has been a significant increase in air strikes across Ukraine, which lead to a 40% spike in child casualties. As a result, more children have been killed or injured in the first nine months of 2024 than in the entirety of 2023. 

Every war is a war against children. The ongoing war is exacerbating children’s needs for protection, mental health and psychological support, food, healthcare, education, clean water, sanitation, and hygiene. 

Children must be protected from harm at all times. 

Four-year-old friends Oleh and Olena live in Dnipro, eastern Ukraine. Despite their young age, they are no strangers to air raids. A few times a day, the children have to hide in shelters from the air raids. 

To make children evacuate promptly, teachers have created playful drills. During alarms, they turn on loud music and dress up as fantasy creatures to reduce stress on children. 

However, often the air raids can last more than two hours, which can cause young children to feel anxious and fearful. 

To help children like Oleh and Olena cope better, Save the Children have worked with nurseries and schools not only in Dnipro, but across the whole of Ukraine, to make these spaces and shelters feel safe and fun for children. 

We have helped fill bunkers with colour, desks, chairs, games and learning materials so that children can focus on just being children. Every pupil also has a stall with an emergency backpack full of water, snacks, warm clothes, and favourite toys. 

Learn how we are providing children with hope amidst the war. 

Children are always the most vulnerable in crisis. Help protect a child’s life and future.

When families had to flee, they packed their clothes, their phone, a favourite toy. But they couldn’t pack security, income, a safe place to play or learn, someone to fight for their rights. That is why Save the Children is there: to provide what families from Ukraine could not fit in a bag. 

For the past 1,000 days, our teams, together with our 25 partners, have been providing humanitarian aid and essential services to children and their families in Ukraine and neighbouring countries.

Save the Children has been delivering humanitarian aid to children and their families in Ukraine since 2014. Our specialist teams are providing children with access to safe, inclusive, quality education and are working to help children overcome the psychological impacts of the war. Learn more about how we support the well-being of children living in conflict. 

We have also been providing cash grants to families so they can meet their basic needs as well as food, livelihood support and medical services. So far we've reached over 219,000 individuals, including over 75,000 children, for the total amount of $60,320,000.

With no end in sight for this war, we are committed to continue serving children and families caught in this war for as long as they need to recover and rebuild their lives. Read more about our response during the last two years of war. 

Help us provide children with what they can't fit in a bag - their security, their education, their rights.